What 's the Difference?

Bodybuilding
Bodybuilding is what most people will think of when the general term “weightlifting” is brought up. Probably because these guys fit the stereotype of what people think a weightlifter “should” look like, they (and their methods) are credited with being the be-all, end-all of resistance training by less educated enthusiasts and laymen. There’s no doubt that these guys have the most muscle mass of anybody on the planet, but if the above formula were true, how come these guys aren’t also world record powerlifters & Olympic lifters? The reason it because building muscle is a different goal from lifting weights or getting strong. The goal is physique change and the main stimulus for physique change is muscular fatigue. Bodybuilding techniques are designed to elicit as much fatigue on a muscle as possible, not to make it stronger. Granted, as muscle adapts to the load, it will take a greater load to elicit the same response, but this is a very slow way to increase your strength. It’s also very hard on your body, especially if you don’t have the rest of your lifestyle set up to accommodate your recovery.




Weightlifting
By weightlifting, I’m referring to the two competitive arenas of lifting: powerlifting & Olympic lifting. The corresponding lifts include the squat, bench, & deadlift (powerlifting) and the clean, snatch, & jerk (Olympic lifting). I’ll also include the press in the Olympic lifting category since the clean & press was an Olympic event until 1972.
In the competitive context, the goal is to lift as much weight on each of these lifts as possible. The goal is not to stimulate new muscle growth as in bodybuilding, nor is it necessarily to increase a muscle’s contractile strength. The latter point may be somewhat confusing to a lot of people. Your primary concern as a competitive lifter is to move as heavy a bar as your can through a corresponding movement pattern. This can be done by increasing the contractile efficiency of the active muscles (real strength), but this is again a relatively slow process. The quicker way to move more weight is to adjust your technique to make the lift as easy as possible.


 Strength Training
With all that’s been said, we’ve finally come to basic strength training. This could also be referred to as “strength & conditioning” or “sports conditioning”. The goal is not to gain muscle mass, or to lift as much weight as possible. It is to get stronger. People and athletes practicing general strength training aren’t concerned with how big they are, nor do they plan to compete in weightlifting.